


To Be A Hero

by zebracakes



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Bucky Barnes Feels, Everybody Lives, F/M, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Gen, Healing, Light Angst, Nostalgia, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, this soft shit be hittin' different, toy shop
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-20
Updated: 2019-08-20
Packaged: 2020-09-19 07:27:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20327362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zebracakes/pseuds/zebracakes
Summary: Bucky adores the oldest toy shop in New York City. Walking into the vast building brought back slivers of memories from when he was a kid. When Tony decides to create a toy line of the Avengers, he thinks kids only know him as a monster. You help remind him that he is indeed a hero.





	To Be A Hero

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this over a year ago after "infinity war" dropped and wanted to ignore that any of that dusting ever happened. au where infinity war happened (and for extra assurance, "endgame" probably happened but no one died OR WENT TO THE FUCKING 40s) but no one died, we won, and all is Good.   
also i throw in some non-canon trivial bucky past life facts to fit the narrative aksjdklas. u can view the relationship between bucky and the reader as either romantic or platonic :3c

You surprise yourself every time you turn the sign from “closed” to “open” every day at exactly 10 AM.

For decades your family has ran one of the longest running toy shops in New York City. Sure, there has been competition left and right with better storefronts and enticing advertising but the shop still remains. There is just something about the market of nostalgia that keeps a business afloat.

Even if the building’s architecture has aged, your shop still carries the latest in toys; sometimes companies would hold events here because of the shop’s notoriety. Either way, no matter how many people walk in through your shop and admire at the majestic items inside along with the priceless looks of awe in children’s eyes, you are still surprised to still be here.

And Bucky is still surprised to see your shop still open.

He remembers walking past the exact shop’s front window to check out the new toys on display. His mother would shoo him away, talking about saving up money to get what he wanted. It never hurt to look but Bucky remembers the longing he felt to get his hands on a miniature car. The toy shop also served as another reminder of his father’s own shop that was down the street where he lived in Brooklyn. Sadly, though, unlike your toy shop, Bucky’s father’s shop closed to become what he found out to be gentrified apartment complexes.

The cheerful ring of the doorbells floating above welcomes his arrival. The wooden floor creaks slightly but is already masked by the chatter of several people in the shop. Like a quiet shadow, Bucky slips over through each aisle until he reaches the shelves that displayed the action figures. Not long ago did Bucky hear that Tony decided to get a toy company to produce a line of action figures of all the Avengers. He didn’t see himself in that title but when Steve showed him the centerfold of a toy catalog with a massive banner at the center that said, “Avengers Toys: Out Now!”, Bucky couldn’t believe it. He was also surprised to learn the Guardians and the Norse gods were to be turned into figurines.

But then he remembers who he was before getting help in Wakanda. How the Winter Soldier made his life a living hell to the point of near destruction. Though many reassured him that the Winter Solider wasn’t him, Bucky still felt every single action he committed. That’s why he didn’t understand why any kid would want to purchase his action figure knowing that almost everyone knows what the notorious Bucky has done. His hand takes a firm grasp around the package of his very own action figure. With his flesh hand, his fingers run through the words towards the bottom: “Bucky Barnes (The Winter Soldier)”.

“I just got those in and he’s already my favorite.” A sweet voice from behind gets Bucky out of his own thoughts. He turns to face you and you automatically recognize him from before. You’ve noticed Bucky for quite some time but you always gave him enough space to explore and never once wanted to intrude on his personal space. Bucky always appeared to be obvious with his dark baseball cap and sweaters despite the rising temperatures. However, this time, you wanted to share the excitement of the new Avengers toy line.

A small smile forms at the corner of his mouth but stops midway. Bucky shakes his head, allowing a few pieces of hair to fall on his face.

“I can’t imagine any kid wanting to play with this.” His voice is almost a whisper while he continues to look at the toy version of him in his hands. You shove your hands into your apron and walk a little closer to his side.

“Why do you feel that way?” You don’t want to press anything further so you stick with that question. You watch as Bucky puts the toy back onto the shelf with the rest of the Avengers. He observes the rest of the lineup before him and bites his tongue.

“Because of what I was before. They probably view me as a scary monster that’s done nothing but terrorize people. The name ‘Winter Soldier’...I just feel like no kid ever associates him with the term ‘hero’.” His eyes drop to the floor to avoid eye contact with you. Bucky can feel a prickle of tears forming in his eyes but he bats his eyelashes for them to stop and disappear.

Your heart sinks as he talks negatively about himself. You wish you could reach out to him and tell him that the public view of Bucky Barnes has changed drastically. He fought alongside Captain America and the Black Panther along with the Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, and the Guardians to defend life on Earth yet Bucky held a negative perception of himself. He was more than the mechanical arm; he is Bucky Barnes.

And you knew you had to help him change that mindset.

Before you can speak up, both of you observe these two kids around the age of nine audibly gasp at the Avengers toys. Bucky steps aside to where you are at and you can’t help but get goosebumps at how close you are to him. The kids, two boys, try to grab something a little over their arms reach so you intervene with a cheery smile.

“Hey! Which one do you want?” You squat down to get to their level. At the same time, their little arms point upwards.

“The Winter Soldier one!” they both say in unison. You give them a warm smile as you get up and grab two Bucky figurines from the shelf and hand each of them one.

“What a great choice!” You smile as you squat back down, careful that you don’t step on your flow-y skirt.

The boys begin the ramble about the toy in their hands.

“He’s got such a cool arm!”

“I wonder if mom would let me get an arm like that.”

Before they can say anything else, they run off with their Winter Soldier toys. You wrap your arms across your chest and slowly turn on your heels to see a bemused Bucky.

Did he just witness that? Did he hear everything correctly? He can feel his metal arm whirling slightly as Bucky relaxes his fingers. You step forward and plant yourself right in front of him.

A big grin dances on your lips with a plan up your sleeve. “How about you come into my shop this weekend as the Winter Soldier and show the whole world that you aren’t the monster some believe you to be?”

It’s a kind offer and even after seeing those kids get excited about the metal arm, Bucky still felt hesitant to have it out on display. Even if he was fitted with a new arm with vibranium and Shuri’s mind reprogramming worked like a charm, it felt like a huge leap out of his comfort zone. Bucky sees your glimmering smile and he can’t help but feel the warmth that emanates from it.

He knows he can no longer hurt people.

Bucky nods lightly and you raise your hands up slightly then let out a tiny “yay!” The celebration isn’t for yourself but rather for him to finally feel comfortable in stepping forward into his new role as an Avenger.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let you do anything you’re not comfortable in doing, okay?” There is sincerity in your eyes and Bucky knows that he can trust you. You both exchange contact information to figure out a good time and you assure him that you will do all the setup. When he steps out of the shop, he can’t help but look back at the toy shop. Bucky observes the display window where in big colorful letters says “Avengers Assemble! Available Today!” There he spots his figurine next to a stuffed animal in the shape of Rocket. He smirks and continues his trek down to the subways.

* * *

Bucky felt odd to be back into his Winter Soldier outfit after Wakanda.

He doesn’t bother to tell the others in the compound about his whereabouts. As usual, Bucky takes a sweater as both to conceal his outfit and as a comfort item. It already feels odd enough to not wear a baseball cap so he said why the hell not to the sweater?

The subway ride into the city goes smoothly and without problem. Once Bucky jumps off the platform and up the stairs, he can feel his nerves kicking in. Near the distance, your shop illuminates like the treasure at the end of a rainbow. He drops his head a little low and walks at a slight pace to get there in time. 

Since this was an event, you wouldn’t open the store doors until 12 in the afternoon. You had rearranged some of the shelving with the aid of your other employees and put tables out to place the catering you had ordered. All, of course, Winter Solider themed. You were determined for this to be a success. You sent out several social media posts, an event page, and put up flyers around the neighborhood. Bucky had done so much to protect the entire universe, this is the least anyone could do.

You head over into the back where you told Bucky to go through. The backdoor pushes open and reveals the shaggy haired man you’ve come to admire. Bucky scrunches up his nose and lets out a laugh as he realizes your outfit.

“Very clever,” he says and walks over to where you stand. Your face gets flustered as you forgot for a moment that you were dressed up as the Winter Soldier himself. You had some help with the vested jacket, wearing a simple pair of slim black pants, dark boots, and created a black sleeve with gold accents to mimic Bucky’s new vibranium arm. You do a small twirl and beam at him.

“I just had this laying around, you know, just in case I had to replace you or something,” you begin to ramble but stop yourself short by biting your tongue. Bucky’s eyes crinkle at the edges and you can’t help but match his enthusiasm and forgo how much you were making a fool out of yourself.

You step closer to close the gap between you two a little. “And the sweater?”

Bucky tugs at the hem. He had gotten so used to wearing the sweater that it felt like a second skin to him. Something kept holding him back from fully embracing who he is, who Bucky Barnes really is.

Now he is willing to be vulnerable for a purpose. Maybe this will help him gain the confidence he needs without the reassurance from anyone else. This is for himself.

Slowly, Bucky unzips the dark sweater and removes it from his body. He drapes it over an empty chair and finally feels the liberation.

You clasp your hands together then drop them to your sides. “You look great, Bucky!”

For the first time, Bucky got complimented on his outfit. It felt foreign to him but he welcomed the nice words. Though it sounds like a mere whisper, Bucky tells you “thank you”.

You stretch your hand out for him to take. “Come on, the show’s about to begin.”

Bucky wants to hesitate but he knows he can do this. With a second first time that day, he takes your hand into his vibranium one and you lead the way.

* * *

“Can I touch your arm, Mister Bucky Winter Soldier Sir?”

Bucky’s heart melts at the request of the little girl before him. He nods with a smile, pushing his arm out for her to touch. The other kids soon circle around her as they let out audible gasps of wonderment. There are several camera flashes coming from all directions but Bucky keeps his cool under the slight pressure.

One kid decides to knock on his arm. “What’s this stuff made out of?”

Bucky begins to tell the story about being in Wakanda, soon talking about the brilliant teenager Shuri whose home country’s vibranium technology and smarts fixed him. Then he speaks about the wonderful king, T’Challa, and how he is the famed hero Black Panther, who he fought alongside with when Earth needed them the most. The kids listen in awe, some with open mouths, all captured by his story. You give his shoulder a tiny squeeze as you kneel beside him.

“You’re my new hero, Bucky!” another kid blurts out then stretches his arms to wrap around Bucky’s neck. You mumble a small “careful” but Bucky reassures you that it’s fine. All the kids around him start to do the same, sending him into a massive group hug and pits of giggles. The adults in the room make a collective “aww!”, including you as you put your hands on your mouth and rest a hand over your heart.

After a few seconds, you gently usher the kids away from Bucky and remind them about the assortment of goodies on the table. As the crowd dissipates, one kid sticks around and glances up at Bucky. You two look down to see her. She opens her mouth to say something but no words seem to come out. Her mother soon comes to her rescue and smiles at the two of you.

“My daughter wanted to ask you if you would sign her prosthetic arm.” Before anyone could say if it was alright, the mother lets out an airy laugh. “I’m totally okay with it. It’s her arm after all.”

Bucky gets down to the girl’s level and she hands him a Sharpie marker. He gladly takes it and uncaps it to sign.

“Ever since you were introduced as an Avenger, Aaliyah couldn’t believe someone with a prosthetic could fight and save the Earth. You helped her a lot with her self-esteem.” The mother places a hand on her daughter’s hair and brushes some loose strands. You wipe a few tears away from your eyes and continue to observe the interaction between Aaliyah and Bucky.

He puts the cap back on the Sharpie and gives it back to her. She looks down at her arm and reads the message Bucky wrote: 

_Be proud of who you are, Aaliyah. -Bucky_

She envelops him into a tiny hug and Bucky returns it. Aaliyah tells him thank you then rushes back to her mother’s side. They wave goodbye and walk past you two. Bucky can feel his eyes tearing up and his heart warming up from this entire event.

You wipe the final tear that managed to drop. “How does it feel to be a hero?”

Bucky takes a moment to reflect on your question. Everything in his life has come down to this very time in space. He no longer believed to be the monster Hydra had made him to be, no longer the lies that were spread to tarnish his image. Though he may never be James Buchanan Barnes, he certainly is Bucky Barnes.

“To be honest? Quite unbelievable.”

**Author's Note:**

> thank u so much for taking the time to read my story! this is actually a personal favorite of mine that i hold near and dear to my heart and for y'all to be able to be a part of something like that means the world to me :) consider leaving a comment or some kudos before u leave


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